Text Transfer On Unglazed Ceramics

I could use some help in solving a puzzle. I need to print/transfer black text onto low fire ceramic pieces that are not going to be glazed. I can find plenty of information on how to do polymer photo transfer but my work is not glazed and is low fire.

If anybody has any suggestion as to where I can find reliable information, or even better...has the solution to my problem, I will be eternally grateful to you.

Are you looking for a method for production work which would need to be efficient or for one of a kind work which might be labor intensive?
There are ways of making small silk screens and using very thick underglaze as ink.
Take a look at Paul Wandless' work ... He uses many different transfer processes.
I am pretty sure there are videos of his methods on the CAD site.

Chris Campbell

Contemporary Fine Colored Porcelain
www.ccpottery.com

TRY ... FAIL ... LEARN ... REPEAT

" ... If a sufficient number of people are different, no one has to be normal"
Fredrick Bachman

As mentioned, you can silk screen. Stencil would also work as would hand painting.
I use stamps to imprint letters into pieces when leather hard. You could brush black paint into the stamped letters and sponge off the excess on the unstamped surface.

You could also try a photocopy transfer technique on leather-hard clay. Make a high contrast mirrored image photocopy (so the text is reversed). The photocopy should be white text on a black ground, so you may have to invert the colors. Most photocopiers can do this. Once you have a photocopy that is white text on a black ground, you can paint any color of underglaze you want to use into the white areas. The black areas will repel it, as the photocopier toner contains plastic that's fused to the paper. These sheets can be used once the underglaze loses its sheen, or can be dried and stored for use later. If storing for later use, you'll just need to spritz water over the paper surface and over the leather-hard clay surface you're transferring the text to. After rewetting the paper, either by spritzing or by quickly dunking into a bucket of water and allowing the excess water to drip off, gently place the paper on the clay, then smooth it out using a rubber rib. Once smoothed on, give it a minute or two, then gently peel away the paper. Excess can be removed using an X-Acto knife. Don't use really thin copy paper, it is hard to remove. The underglaze will be permanent once fired. Note: As you're not glazing it won't be shiny and may not be durable enough for outdoor installation. This technique is demonstrated on the upcoming CAD video by Erin Furimsky. There's not a clip of this particular technique, but there's a clip of some of her other techniques available for previewing: http://ceramicartsda...yered-surfaces/

Another possibility might be to have a stamp made of the text, again, applied to the clay at the leather-hard stage (see the video clip above).

Good luck,Jessica

I could use some help in solving a puzzle. I need to print/transfer black text onto low fire ceramic pieces that are not going to be glazed. I can find plenty of information on how to do polymer photo transfer but my work is not glazed and is low fire.

If anybody has any suggestion as to where I can find reliable information, or even better...has the solution to my problem, I will be eternally grateful to you.

Are you looking for a method for production work which would need to be efficient or for one of a kind work which might be labor intensive?There are ways of making small silk screens and using very thick underglaze as ink.Take a look at Paul Wandless' work ... He uses many different transfer processes.I am pretty sure there are videos of his methods on the CAD site.

Thank you for your reply. I am working on a one of a kind work. the surface on which I need to apply the text is round and uneven and the text is rather small. I need to print over 350 unique words on each one of 350 corresponding pieces and the text needs to be sharp and readable.

As mentioned, you can silk screen. Stencil would also work as would hand painting.I use stamps to imprint letters into pieces when leather hard. You could brush black paint into the stamped letters and sponge off the excess on the unstamped surface.

Thank you for your help. Unfortunately the text is going to be relatively small and is not something I can stencil or paint. I know there is some way I can actually transfer text from a copy onto ceramics but I do not quite know how. The text needs to be sharp and I need to print over 350 unique words on small and round surfaces.

You could also try a photocopy transfer technique on leather-hard clay. Make a high contrast mirrored image photocopy (so the text is reversed). The photocopy should be white text on a black ground, so you may have to invert the colors. Most photocopiers can do this. Once you have a photocopy that is white text on a black ground, you can paint any color of underglaze you want to use into the white areas. The black areas will repel it, as the photocopier toner contains plastic that's fused to the paper. These sheets can be used once the underglaze loses its sheen, or can be dried and stored for use later. If storing for later use, you'll just need to spritz water over the paper surface and over the leather-hard clay surface you're transferring the text to. After rewetting the paper, either by spritzing or by quickly dunking into a bucket of water and allowing the excess water to drip off, gently place the paper on the clay, then smooth it out using a rubber rib. Once smoothed on, give it a minute or two, then gently peel away the paper. Excess can be removed using an X-Acto knife. Don't use really thin copy paper, it is hard to remove. The underglaze will be permanent once fired. Note: As you're not glazing it won't be shiny and may not be durable enough for outdoor installation. This technique is demonstrated on the upcoming CAD video by Erin Furimsky. There's not a clip of this particular technique, but there's a clip of some of her other techniques available for previewing: http://ceramicartsda...yered-surfaces/

Another possibility might be to have a stamp made of the text, again, applied to the clay at the leather-hard stage (see the video clip above).

Good luck,Jessica

I could use some help in solving a puzzle. I need to print/transfer black text onto low fire ceramic pieces that are not going to be glazed. I can find plenty of information on how to do polymer photo transfer but my work is not glazed and is low fire.

If anybody has any suggestion as to where I can find reliable information, or even better...has the solution to my problem, I will be eternally grateful to you.

Thank you for any help.

Hi Jessica,

Thank you for the helpful tips. I think this is getting close to what I am looking for. I will look at the link and see if I can find some help. I know I can transfer text directly onto the ceramics without having to use undergalzes; but I will most definitively try your technique.

I wonder if this might work for what you are doing. It's like carbon paper, but puts "glaze" on what ever you draw or write on the pottery. I bought some but haven't tried it yet. It's worth looking into. Good luck.http://www.minnesota...y/graffito.html

I could use some help in solving a puzzle. I need to print/transfer black text onto low fire ceramic pieces that are not going to be glazed. I can find plenty of information on how to do polymer photo transfer but my work is not glazed and is low fire.

If anybody has any suggestion as to where I can find reliable information, or even better...has the solution to my problem, I will be eternally grateful to you.

I could use some help in solving a puzzle. I need to print/transfer black text onto low fire ceramic pieces that are not going to be glazed. I can find plenty of information on how to do polymer photo transfer but my work is not glazed and is low fire.

If anybody has any suggestion as to where I can find reliable information, or even better...has the solution to my problem, I will be eternally grateful to you.

Thank you for any help.

I am not sure as to what stage that your pot is at, green or fired to maturity at low fire. As other replies have dealt with the green stage I would like to suggest another approach namely using overglaze decals. Ceramic decals are printed with "China Paint" colours. China paint colours are just a very very low firing glaze. They contain flux and therefore would behave as any other glaze on greenware or bisque, only the decal is applied in sheet form rather than in liquid form. See this link here http://www.beldecal.com/how_to.cfm and just follow the FIRING ON UNGLAZED SURFACES instructions. Sheets of letters can be obtained from http://www.held.co.u...nsfers&keyword= or at many other places online if you Google it. Alternatively you could screen them yourself but that is another story.

I've have done a project like this before.
I typed up all the words onto normal copy paper via my pc in the fonts I needed. Then sent sent them off to a decal specialist to convert them into paper decals that I cut, positioned and low fired on to my work.
Not sure of the area you are in but an engine search should find you a decal specialist you can mail to

I've have done a project like this before. I typed up all the words onto normal copy paper via my pc in the fonts I needed. Then sent sent them off to a decal specialist to convert them into paper decals that I cut, positioned and low fired on to my work.Not sure of the area you are in but an engine search should find you a decal specialist you can mail to

Hi LynnyI'd be interested to know whether your decals were screen printed or digitally produced and also whether they were fired on unglazed ware. My reason for asking is that digitally produced decals have a much thinner layer of colour deposited on the decal paper than screen printed. I was wondering if the thickness/thinness of colour layer had any bearing on the fired result. By asking these questions I get to learn as well.

Also most decal makers accept designs electronically saving the necessity to print them off onto normal copy paper.

Johanna - to be honest I dont know how they were produced.
What a I got in return from the decal shop was my text converted into a water slide decal transfer that I then applied to my already glaze fired form and fired the decal on to 700c.
Since that first job I now electronically send images and text to them and the decals are mailed back to me within the week. It's a great system.

Although I am keen to learn more about the printing methods often spoken about using the old printers that use powdered toner. It's on my wish list to get one and do some experimenting with it.
I'm sure there is a demo of this in the CAD library somewhere

Johanna - to be honest I dont know how they were produced.What a I got in return from the decal shop was my text converted into a water slide decal transfer that I then applied to my already glaze fired form and fired the decal on to 700c.Since that first job I now electronically send images and text to them and the decals are mailed back to me within the week. It's a great system.

Although I am keen to learn more about the printing methods often spoken about using the old printers that use powdered toner. It's on my wish list to get one and do some experimenting with it.I'm sure there is a demo of this in the CAD library somewhere

regards, Lyn

Hi LynAre you getting your decals printed at the Decal Specialists in Melbourne? If so they are digitally printed not screen printed.

I assume you are referring to the iron oxide containing toners. Type in "Laser decals" into the search bar in the top right corner. There are 42 entries here of different conversations on Laser decals in the forum. Also if you go to http://overglaze.info/?page_id=180 you will find a section on laser decals including Justin Rothschank's youtube clip. You don't need an old printer as the HP mono laser printers fit the bill.

When I bought my printer the bottom of the range model was a HP LaserJet P1005. I did a search for a printer this morning for a friend and found that the latest bottom of the line model is HP Laser Jet 1120W available from Officeworks and it is only $77.http://www.officewor...ters/HELJ1102W# I checked the MSDS on the toner and they are still using iron oxide 40%-45% in their black for this model so it should work.

You could also try a photocopy transfer technique on leather-hard clay. Make a high contrast mirrored image photocopy (so the text is reversed). The photocopy should be white text on a black ground, so you may have to invert the colors. Most photocopiers can do this. Once you have a photocopy that is white text on a black ground, you can paint any color of underglaze you want to use into the white areas. The black areas will repel it, as the photocopier toner contains plastic that's fused to the paper. These sheets can be used once the underglaze loses its sheen, or can be dried and stored for use later. If storing for later use, you'll just need to spritz water over the paper surface and over the leather-hard clay surface you're transferring the text to. After rewetting the paper, either by spritzing or by quickly dunking into a bucket of water and allowing the excess water to drip off, gently place the paper on the clay, then smooth it out using a rubber rib. Once smoothed on, give it a minute or two, then gently peel away the paper. Excess can be removed using an X-Acto knife. Don't use really thin copy paper, it is hard to remove. The underglaze will be permanent once fired. Note: As you're not glazing it won't be shiny and may not be durable enough for outdoor installation. This technique is demonstrated on the upcoming CAD video by Erin Furimsky. There's not a clip of this particular technique, but there's a clip of some of her other techniques available for previewing: http://ceramicartsda...yered-surfaces/

Another possibility might be to have a stamp made of the text, again, applied to the clay at the leather-hard stage (see the video clip above).

Good luck,Jessica

I could use some help in solving a puzzle. I need to print/transfer black text onto low fire ceramic pieces that are not going to be glazed. I can find plenty of information on how to do polymer photo transfer but my work is not glazed and is low fire.

If anybody has any suggestion as to where I can find reliable information, or even better...has the solution to my problem, I will be eternally grateful to you.

Thank you for any help.

Hi Jessica,

Thank you for the helpful tips. I think this is getting close to what I am looking for. I will look at the link and see if I can find some help. I know I can transfer text directly onto the ceramics without having to use undergalzes; but I will most definitively try your technique.

It is Melbournes Decal Specialist that I use, interesting fact that they are digitally made.Thank you so much for the info on the printers so easily available here- I have ordered one today. I've been reading all the CAD forum info on printing for months and thought it would be difficult to find an old copier.This forum is a library of valuable shared knowledge, thank you for your input.

I've have done a project like this before. I typed up all the words onto normal copy paper via my pc in the fonts I needed. Then sent sent them off to a decal specialist to convert them into paper decals that I cut, positioned and low fired on to my work.Not sure of the area you are in but an engine search should find you a decal specialist you can mail to

Hi Lynny,I am wondering if the decal you had made were applied on glazed or unglazed ceramics. From reading your subsequent posted comments it feels like you are working with glazed pieces. I am just wondering, because my pieces are unglazed, and am not sure it the process would be the same for unglazed works.Thank you.

Paperino, yes, in fact my comments may not have helped your question at all. What I was using was decals being fired onto an already glazed form. I;m not sure what your glazing plans are, but you could also still put decals onto a pre fired unglazed piece as long as it was the final outcome ie no other high temp firing after that stage (the decal would burn out)

But I have also put text onto unglazed work via impressed metal letter stamps, rubbed in oxides and wiped them back to reveal the text. Which i think someone else here also suggested. You can then do a glaze over lay and fire

I have done some experimenting with old photocopies applied to clay, various temps and various results from quite successful to zero. So basically,a bit hit and miss. I applied the image ,ink side to leather hard clay and carefully rubbed the back which removed some excess paper and seemed to help the copy to stick. Has anyone else been doing tests on something like this? Find it hard to find much info (I teach in an Art college and every few years a similiar question pops up) . The main problem I seemed to be having was the copy image peeling or lifting from the clay as shrinkage occured (during drying and firing) particularly,but not solely, on vertical surfaces. If anyone out has come up with a (fairly) reliable technique using direct photocopier to paper to ceramic images, I would greatly appreciate any info you'ld be willing to share. Many thanks.